Loi Toubon

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The Loi relative à l'emploi de la langue française (to German "law concerning the use of the French language"), usually after the then French Culture Minister Jacques Toubon as Loi Toubon called, is a French law that in August 4, 1994 Strength kicked. Its main objective is to protect French consumers and workers and to promote multilingualism.

The original draft provided for an obligation to use French in public and private. Foreign words, especially anglicisms , should be avoided and specially newly created words proposed by the state should be used. A constitutional complaint for violating the right to freedom of expression and speech resulted in the obligation to use substitute words being deleted.

According to the text of the law, for example, the use of English advertising slogans without a French translation is a criminal offense.

Example of translation of English advertising slogans at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris

Opponents have objected that numerous state-decreed word creations used in official French have never prevailed in everyday use and will probably never prevail. In contrast to week-end ('weekend'), the official term vacancelle is largely not used. Numerous examples of the successful introduction of new terms by the official neologism commissions can be found in computer science . In France only the neologisms ordinateur for 'PC', logiciel for 'software' or 'program' and matériel for 'hardware' are used.

In France, the Loi Toubon is sometimes mockingly called Loi Allgood , based on the family name Toubon , which can be roughly translated as "Allesgut"; Jacques Toubon himself is mockingly called Jack Allgood .

The media are particularly affected by another law, also from 1994: According to this, all French light music programs are obliged to broadcast at least 40 percent French-language songs . Half of these songs must come from “new talents or new productions”.

This law has also induced performing artists, for example, to record single releases for a separate French version (e.g. Protège-Moi , in English 'protect me', from placebo ) in order to be played more often on French radio.

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